After All This Time
by PunkyStarshine
Summary: Myka is working at her father's bookstore for the weekend, full Nerdy!Myka attire, when someone from her past shows up unexpectedly. One-shot, takes place somewhere between Seasons 4 and 5, in a slightly AU where cancer does not exist.


_AN: Another Zeebox perk fic! The prompt was simple this time, from Karly ( karlyko): "Bering & Wells: Nerdy Myka." I may have let my imagination run away with this one. Usual spiel: I don't own Warehouse 13, nor any of its characters, or there would have been a lot more H.G. Wells in Season 4. Enjoy!_

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Myka didn't hear the tinkling of the bookstore's front door opening, because she had accidentally started reading the copy of _The Invisible Man_ she was reshelving and was completely entranced, the world around her totally gone. So when she felt a tap on her shoulder and heard someone say her name, she was so startled that she let out a yelp and the book went flying from her hands, landing on the floor with a thump.

She pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose as she turned to see the source of her fright bend over and pick up the book she dropped. Her fear subsided, but her heartbeat didn't slow, as she heard a familiar voice come from the crouching figure. "Now that's no way to treat the works of the father of science fiction." She stood and handed a dumbfounded Myka the book.

"Helena." She breathed it more than said it, unsure if she had fallen asleep in the stacks; maybe this was a dream.

"Myka." H.G. smiled, pulling Myka in for a hug, giving her a gentle squeeze to quell the disbelief she saw in her face. She released Myka from the hug and held her shoulders at arms length, looking her up and down, taking in the outfit, from the somewhat wrinkled purple plaid shirt, to the mess of curls in what seemed to be an attempt at a ponytail. H.G. Wells had never seen a more beautiful sight.

Finally snapping out of her fog of disbelief, Myka found her voice, "What are you doing here? How did you know I was here?"

H.G. removed her hands from Myka's shoulders "Well I went to the Warehouse first, but Claudia told me you were helping your father out for a few days."

"My parents had a wedding to go to, they just got back this morning. You didn't answer my first question, what are you doing here?"

"I was hoping you would have time to have coffee with me."

Myka glanced at the clock at the front of the store, "Sure, it's time to close, anyway. Just let me count the cash register and change."

"No, don't!" H.G. said, a little too quickly. "I mean, you don't have to change. You look great."

Myka blushed and pushed her glasses up again. "Okay, wait out front, it'll only take me a minute to lock up."

H.G. stood outside, admiring the quaint storefront. She felt a pang of sadness as she read the sign, "Bering & Sons", but before she could think on this injustice for long, Myka appeared before her, a big grin on her face. "Ready!"

After they sat down at a table, Myka fidgeted with her coffee cup, trying her best not to stare at the woman sitting across the table from her. To help keep her mind on track she asked, without looking up from her cup, "So, how are Nate and Adelaide?"

"Adelaide is great, smarter by the minute." H.G. took a sip of her tea before continuing. "Luckily, Nate still lets me do some kenpo training with her, even though we are no longer together." H.G. held her breath, unsure how Myka would respond. She was ready to explain why she didn't come running back to the Warehouse the second her conversation with Nate was over, how she had needed time to explain things to Adelaide, to see her a few more times. To say goodbye.

Myka looked up from her coffee and her eyes searched Helena's face. She had a thousand questions; why now? Whose decision was it? Did she plan on going back to Wisconsin or was she here for good? Instead, she smiled. She was here now, that's all that mattered. "That's wonderful."

"How have things been at the Warehouse since..." H.G.'s voice trailed off, unwilling to say the words.

"We're all still healing, the Warehouse included, but we just take it one day at a time. Together."

She hadn't meant anything by her comment, but Myka regretted her choice of words when she saw a flash of something - pain? regret? - in Helena's eyes. She quickly continued, "Artie is even almost back to his old self. Claudia made a new goo-slinging contraption and he hit a new record for how fast he went from impressed by her ingenuity to furious about what she took apart to make it."

H.G. laughed, and Myka's smile grew wider; she had missed that sound. "Speaking of Claudia, I'm sure she would love to see you. You should come back to the B&B with me."

H.G.'s eyes lit up, "Yes, I would love that."

The two women went back to the bookstore to drop off the keys and get Myka's bags before heading back to South Dakota. They had the cab stop by H.G.'s motel room on the way to the airport to get her belongings, careful to tuck some of her stranger contraptions deep in her suitcase so as not to arouse suspicion at the airport - not that people flashing Secret Service badges nor their travel companions ever had any trouble.

During the trip, Myka told H.G. about artifacts they've recovered recently, or, more accurately, the antics of her fellow agents that caused them to almost NOT recover artifacts, and H.G. returned stories of her days as an agent. As she spoke in her melodic British accent, Myka found it harder and harder to avoid H.G.'s eyes, and by midway through the flight, they were turned in their seats, facing each other, nothing else existing but them and the stories they exchanged. Slowly, it seemed the space that time and circumstance had forced between them disappeared.

When they arrived at the B&B, Myka opened the front door and called out, "Claudia, I have a surprise for you!" Being met with only silence, she turned to H.G. and shrugged, shocked the sound of the door closing behind them didn't warrant at least one curious agent. She knew Claudia must be out, because there was nothing short of being out of earshot that would keep her from running towards Myka at the promise of a surprise.

Myka walked into the sitting room and tossed her bags onto the couch, H.G. following suit. "Pete? Artie? You'll never guess who's here!" Myka's voice filled the old house, but once again her calls went unanswered. H.G. tried to hide the concern in her voice, "That's...odd. Is no one home?"

Myka walked over to the table to find a folded piece of paper with her name scribbled across it in Claudia's hurried handwriting. She opened it and read out loud to H.G., "Had to run to Paris, four-agent operation. Be gone a few days, sorry we missed your homecoming. Call me on your Farnsworth when you get back, have a funny story for you. Love, Claudia" Underneath Claudia's signature, Myka saw Pete's sloppy handwriting, "Don't worry, Mykes, I'll eat an authentic croissant for you." Claudia's handwriting had made another appearance to add "or ten" after "croissant" and Myka could practically hear Artie shouting at them to hurry up as they scrambled out the door.

Smiling at the paper, Myka said, "Looks like we have the place to our-" She had started to turn towards H.G. as she spoke, but before she could finish her sentence, Helena had made her way across the room and was standing a breath away from Myka. Their eyes locked, and suddenly Myka felt like she couldn't breathe.

H.G.'s heart was racing so fast she was sure her shirt was fluttering. She didn't check, though, she didn't dare look away from Myka's eyes. She took another step forward, small, since they were already standing so close. Her eyes flickered down to Myka's lips, and saw Myka's tongue dart out to lick them. When her eyes flashed back up to Myka's, she saw that Myka hadn't broken her gaze. Everything unspoken hung between them in that moment, a whirlwind of beating hearts and shallow breaths. It felt like an eternity they stood there like this, until finally Helena laced her hands into Myka's hair and pulled her in for a kiss. Deep, passionate and long overdue.

When they pulled back, chests heaving, H.G.'s hands were still behind Myka's head, Myka's holding tight to Helena's hips. Helena's voice was a husky whisper, "What do you say we go on an amazing adventure?" Myka laughed, her eyes sparkling. She pressed a chaste kiss onto Helena's lips before taking a step back, moving her hands to cover H.G.'s. She clasped them in her own and pulled them gently down from her head, letting them rest, intertwined, between them. She gave Helena's hands a squeeze before starting to walk backwards towards the stairs, tugging H.G. along with her. "It will be our most amazing adventure yet."


End file.
